Joshua stops Takam in 10th
They came to see another explosive knockout from Anthony Joshua, the flattening of a 36-year-old journeyman opponent called up at 12 days’ notice to fight heavyweight boxing’s new superstar.
So when the referee moved in midway through the 10th round to stop Joshua administering more punishment to the game but beaten-up Carlos Takam, the 78,000-strong crowd made their feelings known.
Jeers rained down from all sides of the Principality Stadium on Saturday after Joshua’s 20th straight professional victory was sealed. He’d got through an uncomfortable fight with a busted nose and his WBA and IBF belts intact, but his army of fans wanted more.
“I think people wanted to see Takam unconscious on the floor,” Joshua said.
“My shorts and boots were white at the start and now they are pure pink,” he added. “It’s the ref’s job to allow the fighter to live another day.”
Fighting for the first time since beating Wladimir Klitschko in April, Joshua was unexpectedly taken beyond seven rounds for only the second time of his pro career as Takam — a veteran of 40 fights — lived up to his reputation as a tough, durable opponent.
The Frenchman, an injury replacement for Kubrat Pulev and giving up nearly 30 pounds to Joshua, took an eight count in the fourth round after toppling from a left hook and fought on with a cut above his right eye that twice required treatment. He absorbed some big shots and also had a cut over his left eye by the time Joshua caught him with a hook-uppercut combination in the 10th.
Joshua was moving in to land more blows when the referee stopped the fight. Takam shook his head in disgust and many in the crowd booed the decision.
“I don’t know why the referee stopped the match,” said Takam, whose name was cheered after the fight.
Joshua was fighting at the heaviest weight of his professional career — 254.8 pounds (115.6 kilograms) — and predicted a grueling slog against an experienced opponent that gets in close and works the body. /